autogeekonline car wax, car care and auto detailing forum Autogeek on TV
car wax, car care and auto detailing forumAutogeekonline autogeekonline car wax, car care and auto detailing forum HomeForumBlogAutogeek.net StoreDetailing Classes with Mike PhillipsGalleryDetailing How To's
 
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 20
  1. #1
    Regular Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
    Posts
    126
    Post Thanks / Like

    2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    First of all I'd like to thank everyone who posted in my "help me decide what to use" thread, particularly The Guz who helped give me some confidence when I thought things went terribly wrong (more on that later). So I chose CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss despite still being dubious of coatings: 2 years of protection...IF you have a sacrificial layer for what's already supposed to be your 'super durable' sacrificial layer plus other bespoke maintenance products. Anyway it still seemed like a good choice for my car as a daily driver that lives outside. Plus I really wanted the experience of applying a 'big boy' coating under my belt (my previous coating experience was Polish Angel Cosmic V2 which was very simple to use). After reading good reviews of many CarPro products, I decided to stay in the family for other things used on this project.

    My Portimao Blue M340i xDrive was a special order that I picked up at the BMW Performance Center in Spartanburg, SC (one of the best experiences of my life, do it if you're getting a new BMW). I got the car in December and used the winter to decide what to use for my LSP in the spring. I maintained it with only regular washes during winter. My first and main goal of this process was to remove some factory-installed marring and micro scratches. That was accomplished with CarPro Essense and my Rupes LHR15 Mk III polisher with a yellow Rupes pad. One of the best things I did for this project was convert my old PC 7424XP to a 3" setup to allow me to get into the primary area the micro scratches were bothering me (angled upper portion of the door panels). With the PC I used a 3" URO-Fiber pad which is the best pad I've ever used.

    The COVID-19 situation played right into this project (silver lining I guess) allowing me to take as much time as I wanted without having to drive the car. I used my old barn/garage which usually only holds one car, my 2006 Honda S2000 track car. The lighting in there isn't great which is one of the biggest lessons learned through this process: do everything you can to bring as much light to the process as possible. Where I thought things went off the rails in a major way was when I noticed that my microfiber towels were leaving fibers/lint behind as I buffed off the CQ UK 3.0. I thought I ruined the car (at least temporarily until the coating could be polished off). Luckily that wasn't the case. The fibers were mobile and the application of Gliss collected them at the end of each stroke and my new emergency-buy Costco microfibers lifted them off.

    Not that the folks here reading this don't know already, but CQ UK 3.0 was no joke when it came to high spots. I'd put the high spots into three classifications: 1. legit high spots where you could feel and see the coating sticking up from the clear, 2. rainbow spots where the product wasn't wiped off fully, and 3. slight dark spots where the coating was wiped off but just a tiny bit more was there. I only had one of the first kind at the base of my driver side A-pillar, two of the second kind on each side where the front fenders meet the bumper, and probably half a dozen of the slightly dark spots. The slight dark spots were only noticeable after I thought I was done and pulled the car out into daylight. A couple of the slight dark spots I was able rub CQ UK 3.0 over them enough to get the solvents to reactivate the initial coating and remove the dark spot. The others were handled with Essence and my PC since the areas were small and the URO-Fiber pad was more effective (then re-coat and re-top with Gliss).

    The end result is good and I'm happy with the finish. Looking perpendicular to the finish, the gloss doesn't look too remarkable; however, when looking at oblique angles there's a noticeable increase in reflectivity. The car hasn't seen rain yet but the majority of the car has had CQ UK 3.0 and Gliss on it for a week while in the garage. The touch up spots are currently at 24h post Gliss (48h post CQ UK 3.0). At this point am I glad I did it? Absolutely. I wish I had more product and another car to do it better.

    Key lessons learned for newbies using Essence and applying CQ UK 3.0 and Gliss:
    1. The URO-Fiber pad was awesome, it corrected and finished down effortlessly
    2. Having a 3" setup helped tremendously with tighter areas
    3. Do everything you can to throw as much light at the work as possible, diffuse light works even better for the coating process
    4. Use new microfibers with low pile/weight for coating removal, even if you've got a great cleaning process, don't assume they're clean
    5. You've heard it before but wipe well beyond the area you're working the coating
    6. If correcting high spots don't tape off with painter's tape, the coating darkens the finish and you will then see a line where the tape was that's hard to blend back in



    PRODUCTS USED:
    Wash and decon:
    Meguiar's D111
    Two bucket method with grit guards
    Ryobi 1600/1.2 pressure washer
    MTM Hydro: hose, gun, PF-22 foam cannon
    Speedmaster Wheel Brush
    Merino wool wash mitt - flats
    Detailer's Domain microfiber mitt - sides and lowers
    CarPro Iron-X
    Pinnacle Poly Clay
    Absorber chamois
    Metrovac Master Blaster

    Polish/correction:
    Rupes LHR15 Mk III
    Rupes yellow pad
    PC 7424XP
    Chemical Guys 3" backing plate
    URO-Fiber 3" pad
    CarPro Essence
    Cobra Gunmetal Elite 360gsm microfiber

    Coating/LSP:
    CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0
    Cobra Gunmetal Elite 360gsm microfiber (not new)
    Supreme 530 600gsm (secondary buff) (not new)
    CarPro Gliss
    Costco microfiber towels, low pile (NEW)

    Wheels/calipers:
    Tuff Shine Tire Cleaner
    Sonax Full Effect wheel cleaner
    Meguiar's wheel brush
    Kitchen sponge (for stubborn dirt on barrels)
    (Same wash gear as above)
    CarPro Multi-X (for calipers and wheel well liners)
    CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0
    Tuff Shine Tire Clearcoat

    Misc:
    Torin Big Red Creeper Seat
    Scangrip headlamp


    PHOTOS:
    Here's what you're all waiting for, although it's not a super exciting transformation because it's already a new car...

    These first couple shots represent the primary goal of this mission...remove these defects!




    A photo of the polishing process. I gained new respect for Brian from Apex Detail, Miranda Detail, Forensic Detailing, etc.. Not only is it not easy to take pics or video by yourself, it's even harder not to charge ahead and make progress instead of having the discipline to capture everything you want folks to see. I guess tripods and big memory cards help a lot.



    Now on to the coating steps. Unfortunately I did not get a good shot of what the fibers looked like on the finish before Gliss. Imagine super fine lint/fibers stretched out straight going in the direction of how you buffed off the coating. What I'm going to show you here is how Gliss collected the fibers I was worried were cured onto the finish with the CQ UK 3.0. Then the new Costco microfibers removed them all when buffing Gliss off.







    Random shot of the caliper after the first wheel removal. This was post-wash but pre-deep-clean and coating.



    Here is one of the high spots that manifested as a rainbow. This had to be polished off, re-coated, and re-topped. Ironically, the same thing happened at the same spot on the other side.



    Now for the end result!














  2. Likes PaulMys, Bruno Soares, The Guz, lane5515, DFB and 2 others liked this post
  3. #2
    Super Member PaulMys's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    Eastern L.I. NY
    Posts
    10,769
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: 2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    Damn, that came out GREAT!!

    Thanks for posting your entire experience.

    Great read, and awesome car!
    It is no coincidence that man's best friend cannot talk.

  4. Thanks gofast182 thanked for this post
    Likes gofast182 liked this post
  5. #3
    Super Member spazzz's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    Madison
    Posts
    1,013
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: 2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    You did great and you know what you are doing.
    Nice Bimmer
    I had a couple high spots with Gloss Coat when I first did coatings and decided against the wait.

    That wipe off time is a big question mark.
    What I do is apply, fold my microsuede nice and level, reach for low pile, fold nice then go over area again.
    Finally I reach for a Gold plush JR and go over again.

    I guess what I am saying is I don't really wait.

    That rainbow high spot is a doozy. It should be a meme.

  6. Thanks gofast182 thanked for this post
    Likes gofast182 liked this post
  7. #4
    Regular Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
    Posts
    126
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: 2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    Quote Originally Posted by spazzz View Post
    You did great and you know what you are doing.
    Nice Bimmer
    I had a couple high spots with Gloss Coat when I first did coatings and decided against the wait.

    That wipe off time is a big question mark.
    What I do is apply, fold my microsuede nice and level, reach for low pile, fold nice then go over area again.
    Finally I reach for a Gold plush JR and go over again.

    I guess what I am saying is I don't really wait.

    That rainbow high spot is a doozy. It should be a meme.
    Haha. Thanks, I'm glad you think that because it didn't feel that way at some points. It was my first time with a liquid coating like this. The only thing I had going for me was watching every CQ UK 3.0 application video YouTube had to offer!

  8. #5
    Super Member Sizzle Chest's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2011
    Location
    Naples, FL
    Posts
    5,881
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: 2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    Excellent thread! I enjoyed your write up, pics and reading about your experience! Car came out fantastic and really looks good!

    Very well done!
    Scott Harle
    Autodermatology
    #autodermatology


  9. Thanks gofast182 thanked for this post
    Likes gofast182 liked this post
  10. #6
    Super Member Bruno Soares's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Location
    Southeastern PA
    Posts
    2,480
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: 2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    Lots of work but that first wash will make the effort seem worth it. Now you know for next time how important lighting and the leveling towels are.
    You used a 30ml kit of each product?
    Bruno Soares


  11. #7
    Regular Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
    Posts
    126
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: 2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    Quote Originally Posted by BSoares View Post
    Lots of work but that first wash will make the effort seem worth it. Now you know for next time how important lighting and the leveling towels are.
    You used a 30ml kit of each product?
    Correct, 30ml kit of each.

  12. #8
    Super Member The Guz's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2013
    Location
    LA, CA
    Posts
    8,719
    Post Thanks / Like

    2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    You car came out great. The color looks great. You should see it get a bit more reflective as the coating fully cures.

    Take the high spots as a lessons learned as I mentioned in your other thread. It happens to the best of us when we move onto coating applications.

    Enjoy the ease of cleaning and simple maintenance over the next 18-24 months.

    Maybe try out the other version of Cquartz on the white one.

  13. Thanks gofast182 thanked for this post
    Likes gofast182 liked this post
  14. #9
    Super Member SNP209's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
    Posts
    687
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: 2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    That bimmer is looking proper! Any plans for the white one? Got any pics of the S2K?

  15. Thanks gofast182 thanked for this post
    Likes gofast182 liked this post
  16. #10
    Super Member Coatingsarecrack's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2018
    Posts
    7,060
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: 2020 BMW M340i - CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss

    Nice job. Im up on a year with my CQUK3 and it’s still going strong. Gonna add a coat of Cancoat just cuz. Car looks greAt and good choice on the color.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  17. Thanks gofast182 thanked for this post
    Likes gofast182 liked this post
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Similar Threads

  1. Carpro CQuartz UK 3.0 and Gliss version 2
    By Reuben Brumby in forum Auto Detailing 101
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 01-20-2020, 11:55 AM
  2. Updated CarPro Gliss
    By Mike@DedicatedPerfection in forum Off-Topic
    Replies: 13
    Last Post: 04-21-2019, 09:26 AM
  3. Replies: 20
    Last Post: 11-26-2018, 09:13 PM
  4. 1999 Tahoe -> CarPro Essence + Cquartz TiO2 + Gliss
    By The Guz in forum Show N' Shine
    Replies: 16
    Last Post: 07-05-2018, 09:50 PM
  5. When will AG have Carpro Gliss?
    By Jeremy1976 in forum Auto Detailing 101
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 03-04-2018, 06:17 PM

Members who have read this thread: 1

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

» March 2024

S M T W T F S
2526272829 1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31 123456